Jo Loves... Early summer 2022
As we skip summer-wards, Beauty Bible's Joint Editor Jo Fairley swoons over a new scent, drenches her skin in rose-scented cream, gives her scalp some TLC – and shops the West End for new make-up discoveries…
CHANEL Les Eaux de Chanel Paris-Paris
I was lucky enough to be introduced to Chanel Perfumer Olivier Polge to Les Eaux when they launched this airy, transparent collection a few years back. I've had flirtations with several of the fragrances – I really like Paris-Deauville – but this is 'my' Les Eaux, and my scent of summer 2022. A dewily rosy Chypre, Paris-Paris taps beautifully into the trend for 'modern rose' fragrances – the furthest possible cry from the type your granny wore – and is bright with pink pepper, plus lashings of my favourite patchouli in the base. And I'm gonna need a second bottle soon, at this rate.
£114 for 125ml eau de toilette – buy here
L'Oréal Paris True Match Eye Cream in a Concealer
Problem: Left home without concealer. Staying overnight away. Important breakfast speaking engagement. Solution: nip into Oxford Street Superdrug and find something new to take for a shadow-disguising spin. A bit risky (it would have been safer to buy a replenishment of my regular Armani Power Fabric Concealer), but you know what? This one's a keeper: a brilliantly light-reflective yet not too glimmery concealer, which isn't heavy and obvious, doesn't settle into lines – in fact, it contains age-defying ingredients (hence the ‘Eye Cream-in-a-Concealer’ name) – and set me back less than a tenner. PLUS there’s an ‘insurance policy’ SPF20 in there. Literally nothing not to love about this (and it's great on the '11' line between the eyebrows, too).
£9.99 – buy here
Innersense True Enlightenment Scalp Scrub
You know lockdown's well and truly over when your fave hair salon lets you keep your own products in a little bag backstage again. Innersense have triumphed in the past few Beauty Bible Awards and like the rest of the Beauty Bible team I'm a convert, most recently to this scalp scrub. I've got pretty healthy hair and a problem-free scalp (counting my blessings here), but took this hefty jar for a road test to Nicola Clarke at John Frieda, and was well and truly impressed by the minty zing, the uber-clean afterglow – that's what it felt like – and the impact on my hair, rather than my scalp: super-shiny and swingy and definitely 'fresh-feeling'. (No stinging or uncomfortably gritty feeling, which I've had from some scrubs.)
It has joined a little bag of Innersense goodies with my name on (quite literally), notably the mega-moisturising Hydrating Cream Hairbath and Hydrating Cream Conditioner. (I love that these are also available in 59ml sizes, great for travel or trialling.)
£40 for 198ml – buy here
'OK, Instagram,' I said out loud, 'you win...' So many times had the ad for MAC.'s new mascara appeared in my Insta feed that eventually, I gave in, nipped into their Carnaby Street store and handed over my credit card. And clearly, Instagram hadn't just fathomed that I am fond of fluffy rabbits, cabbage plates and Indian print frocks, but also that I have sparse and stubby lashes, because this is the best mascara that I have used in a long, long time.
Its rubber wand really grips every lash (even lashes) I didn't know I had, lifts and loads them with inky black colour. If I wanted (but I don't), I could build on that first coat and keep building (right up to super-spiky lashes, which were what MAC’s own ads featured; not my usual thing, so I gave this a go somewhat against my better judgment). What's amazing is that lashes honestly then stay perfect till removal – not a speck, not a smudge. Utterly brilliant (and clever ol' Insta, eh?)
£26.00 – buy here
Odile Paris OR, je veux Age Defying Cream
This had me at 'bonjour'... Now, it takes a lot to seduce me away from my favoured face creams. But when something lands on your desk that smells this good, it's irresistible – and I haven't been disappointed by what's in the jar, either. Dreamy, creamy AND like burying your nose in a huge bunch of blowsy roses. From an ingredient perspective, there are extracts of asparagus stem (that's a new one), oat kernel, buddleja, thyme, grape stem cells and narcissus bulb, but it's the Alpine rose extract that gives this its straight-from-the-rose-bower scent, helping to boost skin resilience. The texture? Think double-whipped cream. I've been applying generously, for bouncy, velvety skin. Or, je veux – je t'aime.
£140 for 50ml – buy here
